Plantswoman FIONA EDMOND, who owns the award-winning Green Island Gardens in Ardleigh, shares her gardening tips. Today the topic is the current drought we are experiencing...

After the wettest spring on record for years we are now in the midst of one of the most severe droughts I can remember.

Is this all evidence of global warming? I’m not sure, but whatever the cause, our extreme weather conditions are proving more and more challenging for us gardeners. We have had no proper rain since April here at Green Island Gardens, the lawn is brown and scorched, and now it is a daily battle to get buckets of water to the shrubs most in need whilst keeping the nursery stock alive as well.

It is a question of priorities and the shrubs most newly planted are in greatest need, along with everything growing in pots of course. The grass, however brown will recover, perennials wilt and look very sorry for themselves but I am hoping they will go into a premature dormancy as they do in the winter, recovering again if we get some proper rain later in the season, or failing that next spring, but it is my trees and shrubs that are most in need.

In the woodland where we have hundreds of Azaleas, Rhododendrons Camellias and Acers it is the deciduous azaleas along with hydrangeas that seem to be hit hardest, with the Acers and Camellias proving more tolerant in the short term. In the main beds the trees and shrubs are generally standing up pretty well but it is some of the perennials that are looking most sorry for themselves.

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Monardas, astrantias, asters, anemones, eupatoriums and penstemons seem to be suffering the most whist the more fleshy plants such as sedums and alstromerias appear to be relishing the heat. I always know when the main beds are in serious trouble when I can detect the unmistakeable scent of Cercidiphyllum leaves turning yellow before late September releasing as the do the smell of candyfloss or boiling jam as the sugars in the leaves break down. Many plants have clever mechanisms for coping with extreme drought. The Cercidiphyllum as many other trees do will close down certain parts of their structure, sacrificing small branches or certain leaves in the name of preserving the rest. Any new sappy growth may die back, and it is the extremities which are sacrificed first, rather like a humans fingers and toes when coping with extreme cold.

Silver leaved plants have many tiny hairs all over their surface which helps to reduce water loss by transpiration, succulents have fleshy leaves which act as water storage organs so rather like cacti they can withstand long periods of time with no water. Bulbs here at Green Island seem to be growing and flowering as normal, again the bulb itself storing moisture underground.

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My tips for coping with drought are:

1. Plant more fleshy perennials, and less of the ones which require regular rainfall such as Agapanthus, Alstromeria and Sedums.

2. Mulch, mulch, mulch, whether with leaf litter, bark chips, or gravel it is amazing how much moisture will be preserved in the soil below with a covering of just an inch or so.

3. Move plants in pots out of the hottest sun, and into shade if possible.

4. Water in the evening when the plants will have 12 hours to take up the water and recover before the heat of the sun returns.

5. Planting under a permeable membrane covered with gravel using shrubs and bulbs I believe is the best way to create a garden that requires least maintenance and no watering. Our seaside garden, and gravel entrance gardens are both created in this way and have never been watered even in their first seasons. In addition weeds are virtually non-existent, and both areas have plants of interest at all times of the year.

6. Finally, don’t panic! Plants are surprisingly resilient once established. Most have the capacity to recover even from a seriously wilted state, given shade and adequate moisture.

Even if they don’t, it may be that their demise will give you an opportunity to plant something different next year!

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